Gummed-strip-serving apparatus.



F. O. KOI-IART. GUMMED STRIP SERVING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.17,1910.

1,044, 1 90. Patented Nov. 12, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Attest: 4 Q v gal 46 $4 Atty,

F. G. KOHART.

GUMMBD STRIP SERVING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 17, 1910.

Patented Nov. 12, 191.2.

2 FijiLETS-$HEBT 9 w u M6 Inventor: (W A Atty,

Attest:

*FR-AN'K C. KOHABT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

G'U'MMED-S'IRIP-SERVING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 12, 1912.

Application filed September 17, 1910. .Serial No. 582,439.

To all whom 'itmay concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK C. KoHART, a citizen of the United States, residing at the borough of Brooklyn, in the city of New York, county of Kings, and State of New. York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gummed Strip Serving Apparatus, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates to gummed strip serving apparatus, and more particularly to a type thereof adapted'to both moisten and apply the gummed strip to the package to be sealed thereby.

The main object of my invention is to provide a device of this character wherein the free end of a continuous roll of gummed strip will be moistened, delivered, and pressed upon a package or parcel to be sealed, and severed into lengths as required,

by a mechanism so compactly arranged as to be conveniently held in the hand of the operator.

A further object is to provide such a de vice wherein the movement thereof over the package-or parcel to be sealed will simultaneously press the moistened portion of the strip upon the package or parcel, and feed theunmoistened portion thereof across the moistening pad in a quantity determined by the degree of movement of the device.

A still further object is to provide a de vice of this character wherein the feeding movement and the actuation of the cut-off shears may be accomplished by pressing the device flatly upon the package or parcel being sealed, thus eliminating the use of coin plicated mechanisms for effecting these results and simplifying the mode of operation of the device.

A still further object is to provide a device of this character wherein the operating grip thereof will serve as a storage tank for the water or other moistening fluid and means will be provided to admit air to said tank to insure the proper feed of the water to the moistening pad while the strip is being fed across the said pad, said means being closed when the device is not in opera- 3 tion to avoid the emptying of the tank.

A still further object is to provide a device of this character wherein the weight of the water in the tank will be directed upon the moistening or damping pad while the strip is being fed, and said ad will be relieved from said pressure w ile the device 1s not in use to limit the delivery of moisture to the pad to that period when such moisture is required for damping purposes.

A still further object is to provide a de vlce of th1s character wherein the strip feed mechanism may be actuated by a moving appl1cat1on to, or frictional engagement with, the package or parcel to be sealed, or by hand, as desired.

A still further object is to provide a de vice of this character wherein the free end of the roll of strip will be guided and held perfectly fiat prior to the engagement of the feeding mechanism, such guiding means being so arranged as to permit the strip to be readily threaded through the device.

A still further object is to provide a device adapted for work of different characters as determined by the quantity ofstrip used within a given period.

A .still further object is to provide a device which may be adapted for use in connection with strips of different widths. And a still further object is to provide a device of this character which will be simple in design and the operative parts of which will all be exposed and arranged along the tank handle in a manner to enable the operator to determine at a glance whether or not the strip is in proper condition and to remedy any loss of adjustment of parts or displacement of said strip. v

The invention consists in the novel fea: tures of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and de' scribed, and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawings: Figure 1 is a plan view of a gummed strip serving apparatus embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section; Fig. 4 is a vertical section through-the relief valve; Fig. 5 is a vertical section through the shears; Fig. 6'is a detailed view showing the application of the supplemental guide to the device; and, Fig. 7 is a detailed view showing the strip roll support applied to the device.

Like letters refer to like parts throughout operator to grasp same in operating the de vice. The top of this handle is provided with guide flanges I) at the sides thereof, sufficient clearance being provided between said flanges to permit the insertion of the thumb of the operator for the purpose of feeding the strip forwardly in threading the device. The portion of the handle a below said guide flanges b is preferably flat so as to hold the strip passing therethrough perfectly flat in order to insure the thorough moistening of the gummed surface thereof. The handle being hollow, serves as a tank for the fluid for moistening the damping pad.

Toward the forward end of the handle tank a, the top wall thereof is brought downwardly and forwardly in a curve to form a platen against which the feed roller 0 presses the strip while the device is in operation. Forwardly of the feed roller 0, said top wall is projected upon a substantially straight line, an opening being formed in advance of said roller through which a substantially flat, extended surface of a damping pad d projects, the main body of said pad being confined within the forward, reduced end of the handle tank a (as shown in Fig. 3), this arrangement resulting in a gravity feed of the fluid contained within the tank a, to said pad without likelihood of the delivery of an excessive supply of such fluid to the pad. A constant supply of moisture to said pad results irrespective of the quantity of gummed strip drawn thereover, but only during the operative interval.

The gummed strip itself is indicated by the letter 6.

The side walls of the handle tank a, at the forward end thereof are extended above the reduced portion of said tank in a manner to form bearings for the feed roller and for the presser roller f mounted in advance of the pad d, so that the strip delivered by the feed roller and passed over and mois tened by the pad at, will be pressed upon the parcel or package by said roller f through the continued movement of the device. To compensate for irregularities in the diameter of the roller f, I preferably make this presser roller of a plurality of disks of rubber or other resilient material, a construction which also permits the said roller to adaptitself to surfaces of irregular contour. Carried by the side flanges a, in which the rollers 0 f are mounted, are a plurality of presser and guide bars 9 adapted to force the strip into contact with the pad (Z, and in addition to preventing its curling upwardly after being moistened. guide it below the presser roller f.

Mounted forwardly of the feed roller 0 and between it and the pad d are the shears for severing the strip into lengths as required, which shears consist of a vertically reciprocatory knife blade it and a fixed knife blade 7', over which the strip passes. Said blade [1, is mounted upon a spring supported head 7' adapted to be normally raised so as to provide clearance between said knife blades for the passage of the strip. means being provided fo actuating said shears as desired by the operator.

The detailed shear construction is substantially as follows: Upon each flange a is mounted a slotted cylinder is carrying a helical spring 7: acting against the bottom of said cylinder and carrying an impact member 7x3 bearing upon an arm attached to the knife head j and to the lever handles Z, fulerumed upon the axle of the feed roller 0, and projecting below and extend-' ing across the bottom of the handle tank a. The outer ends of the lever handles are slotted (as shown) to afford that lost motion necessary to insure the direct vertical reciprocation of the knife blade h. By positioning the lever handles Z as described, the shears may be operated by merely pressing the cross head of said handle down upon the parcel or package being sealed, thus avoiding any necessity for a special operation on the part of the operator in severing the section of strip required in sealing a parcel or package. The construction of the knife blade is such as to secure the desired shearingaction, although any construction other than that shown may be employed for securing this effect.

The forward end of the handle tank a is extended laterally (as shown in Fig. 1) in order to permit the attachment of a supplemental guide member an adapted to carry a strip of greater width than the guide flanges b will receive, said flanges, when this supplemental guide member is used, serving as av means of attachment for said member. Carried by the member m is a pivoted, toothed member m adapted to engage the strip 6 passing through said guide and prevent a .return movement thereof.

The feed roller 0 is keyed or otherwise secured to its axle, and each end of said axle is provided with a wheel a of a diameter which will cause the periphery thereof to project below the handle tank a, the surface of said wheels being roughened so that the feed roller 0 may be rotated either by the thumb of the operator or by the frictional engagement of said wheels with the parcel or package being sealed, and the movement of said handle a relative thereto.

Carried by the handle a. is a normally open relief valve consisting of a cylinder 1) having ports therein communicating with the interior of. the tank a and with the atmosphere, and a reciprocatory piston I" so set as to normally place said ports in communication with each other while the device is in operation, thus ,insuring the ofthe spring 0 and close the ports in said cylinder 0. This construction preventsfeed of the fluid to the pad d while the device is not in use and at the same "ime insures the continuous feed of fluid c said pad while the device is in operation, with a result-ant thorough moistening of all portions of the gummed strip passing over said pad 03. 20,

To further guard against the feed of fluid to the pad (2 when the device is not in operation, I provide a spring support 9' adjacent to the feed roller 0, which support is adapted to elevate the forward end of said tank and cause the fluid to flow toward the. rear end thereof and away from the pad (13,

thus minimizing the pressure upon the pad incidental to a gravity feed. The support 7) may consist of a projecting end of a torsion spring.

'A device of this character will have its field'of widest application to the sealing of irregular parcels as in retail stores, express oflices, etc, where the quantity of strip used will be sufficiently great to require a large roll of same, so as to permit an extensive run of the device without the necessity for changing rolls or rethreadingthe device. When a roll'of large diameter is \,used it is impracticable to support this rol'l upon the device itself, so that an independent roll supporting device will necessarily be used, the

free end of this roll only being carried by the device. When, however, the device is usedfor applying small seals, or sealing small parcels, a sufliciently large roll may be mounted directly upon and carried by thehandle tank a, a socket 9 being formed upon the rear end of said handle, and a bifurcated frame 1' having a tongue 8 being detachably mounted by means of said tongue and socket connection upon the handle tank a. The arms of the frame 1' are preferably made of spring material and are forced into frictional engagement with the sides of the roller by means of a screw bolt and nut t. (See Fig. 7.) In one side of the handle 4 tank (1, toward the rear thereof, is an opening through which the tank may be filled,

said opening being closed by the screw.- threaded plug a. This opening should be of sufiiciently large dimensions to permit the filling of the tank without necessitating the immersion of the entire tank in the fluid.

The operation of the herein described gummed strip serving apparatus is substantially as follows :In operating the device, the end of the. roll of gummed strip is inserted beneath the "inwardly and laterally extended flanges b,'forming guide channels inclosing the edges of said strip, the gummed surface of said strip being presented downwardly. The advance end of said strip is then pushed forwardly by inserting the thumb or finger between said flanges b, threaded beneath the feeding roller 0, the

flanges b as stated above, holding this strip perfectly flat upon the top of the tank handle a- When it is desired toapply the gummed strip to a parcel or package, the feed roller 0 is rotated, either by'hand, as with the thumb or finger of the operator, or

by. forcing the friction wheels 12, into contact or engagement with such parcel or package, and drawing: the entire device toward the operator. As the strip is fed forwardly by the roller 0 it is delivered beneath the guides g and at the same time caused to contact with-thev pad d, receiving moisture therefrom sufficient to make the gummed surface thereof adhesive. It will be observed that the moistened surface of the strip is always in advance of the shear blades h c and feed roller 0, and th'at after leaving .said moistening pad 03 it does not contact with any part of the device. The moistened end is delivered by the guides g beneath the presser roller f with the gummed surface presented downwardly, the said strip receiving the requisite pressure, to cause it to adhere to the package or parcel, from said roller the continued feeding movement of the strip, if desired, being against the resistance afforded -by this attached end thereof.

Any length of strip desired may be moistened and applied in this manner, the feed being an indeterminate one, as to quantity, the entirestrip fed being moistened by the pad 01 irrespective of thequantity thereof.

The pad. d being moistened by agravity feed, while the deviceis'in operation, in-

sures a constant supply of moisture to the 1 pad, suificient'to accomplish the desired result, the efliciency of the feed being in-' creased by the application of the entire weight of the water contained in the handle tank'a upon the pad, with that forward tilting of the handle incidental to the operation of the device, and the normally open relief valve 0 0 communicating with said tank.

When approximately .the desired quan tity of strip has been fed, the shear blade it is forced downwardly by the lever handles Z controlling same, severing a section of the strip from the continuous roll, at a point bet-ween the feed roller 0 and the moistening pad d, thus preventing a fouling of the shears. The actuation of the levers Z may be either by hand, the said levers being readily accessible to the hand of the op-- erator, or bypressing the cross head connecting said levers Z against the parcel or the springs 70 raise the blade It so as to afford the proper clearance for the next feeding movement of the strip 6. i

When a considerable length of strip is required with each actuation of the device, or a long running device is desired, the strip 6 will be drawn from a large roll attached adjacent to the wrapping counter. When, however, small sections or labels only are used, the strip roll may be attached directly to the tank handle a, as shown in Fig. 7 of the drawings, or in any other desired manner. When the device is not in use, it should be set upon its bottom with'the spring support p presented forwardly to elevate the forward end of the tank a and relieve the pad 03 from the, pressure of the fluid con- 'tained within said tank. The weight of this fluid and the position of the tank a will also close the reliefvalve,-through the pressure upon the bottom 0, limiting, if not entirely preventing, the feed of fluid to the pad d when the tank is not in use, the presence of the fluid, however, in contact with said pad serving to keep it sufliciently moist for instant use.

When a strip of a width greater than can be accommodated by the flanges b is to be used, the supplemental guide member m is flanges b, the pawl m supplementing the pressure exerted upon the strip by the feed roller 0 in preventing the accidental withdrawal of the strip from beneath said roller.

It will be observed that in the device shown in the drawings, all of the operative parts of the device are contained in an exposed position upon' the tank. handle a where their operation may be readily observed, and they may be readily inspected; andthat all of the parts are under the control of the operator, no interposed mechanisms being employed which may become disarranged 'or lose accuracy or efliciency through wear.

It is not myintention to limit the inven.

' tion to the precise details of construction shown in the drawings, it being apparent that such are largely mattersof design and may be varied without departing from the spirit or scope ofthe invention.

Having described my invention what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent is: a

1. In a gummed strip serving apparatus,

the" combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, of damping means carried by said tank and I f-supplied therefrom with means for making he strip adhesive, a presser roller arranged attached to the. tank a by means ofsaid strip from a continuous roll arranged between said damping pad and said feeding means, and means whereby said feeding means may be operated manually by .the op erator or by the frictional engagement with the parcel or package being sealed.

2. In a gummed strip serving apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, having the top wall thereof curved downwardly and extended forwardly adjacent to one end, of a feed roller journaled adjacent to, and adapted to bear against, the curved portion of said tank, a damping pad carried by said tank forwardly of said feed roller, said pad being supplied with moistening fluid from said tank, a presser roller journaled in bearings arranged forwardly of said pad, guide strips extending from adjacent to said feed roller to adjacent to said presser roller whereby the moistened strip is delivered below said presser roller, shears arranged between said feed roller and said damping pad, means actuating said shears, and means whereby air is admitted to said tank to insure the continued feed of fluid to said pad.

3. In a gummed strip serving apparatus, the combination with, a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, of a feed roller journaled adjacent to the forward end thereof, guides extending along the top, of said tank and terminating adjacent to said feed roller, a damping pad carried by said tank forwardly of said feed roller, said pad being supplied with moistening fluid from said tank, a presser roller journaled inv bearings arranged forwardly of said pad, guide strips extending from adjacent to said feed roller to adjacent to said presser roller whereby the moistened strip is delivered below said presser roller, shears arranged between said feed roller and said damping pad, means actuating said shears, and means whereby air is admitted to said tankto insure the continued feed of fluid to said pad.

4. In a gummed strip serving apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, of a feed roller journaled adjacent to the forward endthereof, a damping pad carried by said tank roller, said pad being supplied with moistening fluid from said tank, a. presser roller journaledin bearings arranged forwardly of said pad, ide strips extending from adjacent. to said feed roller to adjacent to said presser roller whereby the moistened strip is'delivered below said presser roller, shears arranged between said feed roller and said damping pad, means, actuating said shears, a relief valve communicating with said tank, and means whereby said valve is opened while the device is in operation and is automatically closed when the device is laid upon any object. a

5. .In a gummed strip serving apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, the forward end of said tank bein laterally extended and having the top wal thereof curved downwardly and extended forwardly adjacent to one end, of a feed roller journaled adjacent to, and adapted to bear against, the curved portion of said tank, a damping pad carried by said tank forwardly of said feed roller, said pad being supplied with moistening fluid from said.

tank, a presser roller journaled in bearings arranged forwardly of said pad, guide strips extending from adjacent to said feed roller to adjacent to said presser roller whereby the moistened strip is de- "livered below said presser roller, shears arranged between said feed roller and said damping pad, means for actuating said shears, means whereby air is admitted to said tank to insure the continued feed of fluid to said pad, guides adapted to accommodate a strip of one width carried by the to of said tank, and supplemental remov-, ab e guides adapted to accommodate a strip of greater width adapted to be attached to said tank.

6. In a gummed strip'serving apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted .to serve as a. handle for operating the device, of damping means carried by said tank and supplied therefrom with means for makin the strip adhesive, a presser roller arrange in advance of said damping means or pad, feeding means having an indeterminate quantity of movement, arranged re'arwardly of said pad, means for severing a section of strip from a. continuous roll, arranged between said damping pad and said feeding means, and means whereby a supporting frame for a roll of strip may be mounted rearwardly of said feeding means.

7. In a gummed strip serving. apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, of strip feedin means, a damping pad arranged forwar ly of said means, a presser roller arranged forwardly of said damping pad, a fixed shear blade, over which the stri passes, between said feeding means and sai 'dampin pad, a cooperating, reciprocatory shear b ade, and operating levers for said last named blade extending beneath said tank whereby said shears maybe actuated by pressing said tank toward the parcel or package being sealed.

8.-In a gummed strip serving apparatus, the combination with a tank adapted to serve as a handle for operating the device, of strip feeding means, a damping pad arranged forwardly of said means, a presser roller arranged forwardly of said damping pad, a fixed shear blade, over which the stri passes, between said feeding means and sai dam in pad a coii eratin reci rocator shear bl ade, dperatifig level s for said lagt named blade extending beneath said tank whereby said shears may be actuated by pressing said tank toward the parcel or package being sealed, and springs adapted to normally raise said shear blades and depress said means actuating same, to afford clearance for the passage of the strlp, and

position said operating means preparatory said tank, a damping pad carried by said tank forwardly of said feed roller, said pad being supplied with moistening fluid from said tank, a presser roller journaled in bearings arranged forwardly of said pad, guide strips extending from adjacent to-said feed roller to adjacent to said presser roller whereby the moistened strip isv delivered below said presser roller, shears arranged be tween said feed roller and said damping pad,

means actuating said shears, means whereby air is admitted to said tank to insure the continued feed of fluid to said pad, and

yielding means adapted to normally elevate said forward end of the device to relieve said pad from pressure when the device is not inoperation.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto aflixed my signature, in the presence of two witnesses, this 14th day of September, 1910.

FRANK O. KOHART.

Witnesses:

F. T. WnN'rwon'rH, P. FRANK SONNEK; 

